Eagles excited about big-play potential Jeffery and Smith add

The Eagles had an obvious lack of juice offensively last year, leading them to sign free agent wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith.

And after both caught touchdowns last night, the hope is the acquisitions continue to pay off over the course of the regular seasons.

Smith caught a 50-yard touchdown pass from Carson Wentz, and Jeffery added one of (only) 15 yards, giving them the spark they lacked last season.

“I think that can definitely be a big part of the offense,” Wentz said, via Dave Zangaro of CSNPhilly.com. “I think a guy like Torrey that can run like that is going to open up some things. Whether we actually are completing deep balls or he’s just stretching the defense for some underneath stuff to help out guys in the slot like [Zach] Ertz, [Darren] Sproles, you name it. I think that’s just a big part of the offense we’re going to see expanded out a little more.”

Jeffery’s the more polished receiver of the two, but Smith has the kind of straight-line speed that can make him dangerous without the ball.

And the Eagles lacked that kind of vertical element last year, when they were next-to-last in the league with 30-yard passing plays, with just 11. They had just two passes of 50 yards or more last season, so they’re obviously eager to try to fix that now, and Thursday was a positive sign.